About Us

The Institute for Energy and Environmental Flows (IEEF) is a world-leading physical sciences research institute at the University of Cambridge. Our highly interdisciplinary team includes academics, post-docs, PhD students, and part III students from across university departments including Earth Sciences, Chemistry, Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, Engineering, and Chemical Engineering.

Our mission

Research

Research at IEEF spans a diverse range of topics, united by a shared motivation: to address real-world challenges and fundamental scientific knowledge gaps through rigorous academic inquiry.

Natural Environment

Surface Science

Energy Efficiency

Carbon Storage

We host a wide range of researchers at the institute, from undergraduate students to highly established professors, in a friendly atmosphere that fosters conversation and collaboration. We offer annual fully-funded PhD scholarships and are always interested to hear from researchers who would like to join us or to learn from us. If you are interested in working or studying at IEEF, please see our list of available roles and projects or contact the relevant member of staff.

Explore Research

Recent Publications

Emma’s model on interseasonal thermal energy storage

In temperate climates, many buildings need heating in winter and cooling in summer. A significant amount of energy can be saved by storing excess heat during the warmer months, and using it to warm up  a …

Dabwan’s work on encapsulation of vitamin E

Encapsulation is used to deliver materials to specific sites, protect fragile materials from harsh external environments or to delay release of an active compound until a desired time. Mohammed Al Sharabi and professor Alex Routh have …

Sam’s paper on reaction and convective instabilities in a porous rock

In a number of natural or industrial settings, such as magmatic intrusions or geothermal power systems, subsurface porous rocks are flooded by fluid of a different density and composition than the original formation fluid. As the …
More Publications

Latest News

PhD position in Electrohydrodynamics: Apply Now

A fully funded PhD at the University of Cambridge, under the supervision of Professor Alex Routh is available. It is in collaboration with a Dynamic Smart Glass manufacturer. Dynamic Smart Glass windows become opaque or clear in response to …

Head of Institute gave RGS lecture on the Energy Transition

On the 29th January 2025, Professor Andy Woods gave a public lecture for the Royal Geographical Society titled ‘The energy transition: what it means for the UK and the world’. The event was held at 7:30pm …

Cambridge Energy Masterclass 2024

On 9-10 December 2024 we hosted our annual Cambridge Energy Masterclass in the Centre for Mathematical Sciences. This very well-attended event offered an illuminating insight into the state-of-the-art understanding of many vital areas of the energy …
All news

Recent Seminars

Bubble growth in electrolysis

Methane availability is crucial to the energy transition. Currently, most hydrogen is produced by steam methane reforming, a carbon-intensive process. A small amount of green hydrogen is being obtained from the electrolysis of water; however, for …

Collapsing non-spherical bubbles

Professor Daniel Fuster is the CNRS Research Director at the Institut d’Alembert, and works at Sorbonne University in Paris. He visited us today, and presented his recent work on the collapse of non-spherical bubbles. Professor Fuster’s …

Cracking in drying films

Professor Alex Routh has long been interested in colloidal suspensions, and today he told us about some of his recent work in the field.  When a pool of fluid containing a suspension of particles  is left …
Upcoming Seminars